


Down In Flames

by TurtlePushups



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Firefighters, Domestic Fluff, Firefighter Liam, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, Niam are married, Niam family, liam gets hurt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-20
Updated: 2016-02-20
Packaged: 2018-05-21 23:23:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6061996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TurtlePushups/pseuds/TurtlePushups
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Firefighter AU<br/>Liam and Niall are married with a little girl, and Niall hates when Liam gets called to a fire in the middle of the night.  He's always been terrified of Liam getting hurt.<br/>And then he does.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Down In Flames

Niall was violently pulled from sleep by the screeching of the scanner on the other side of the room, followed by a ruffling movement on the other side of the bed.  The movement of the blanket and removal of the warm body behind him sent a cold draft along his spine, making him shiver and groan in annoyance.

“Again?” he whined sleepily, face still half buried in his pillow as he watched the shadow move across the room.

“Sorry, Bug, sounds like a bad one,” his husband murmured as he switched off the crackling machine informing him of the fire across town.  He glanced at the clock, seeing the red numbers glowing an annoying 3:47 back at him.  He sighed.  “If all goes well I’ll be back by lunchtime.”

Niall groaned again as his husband sat on the edge of the bed next to him, running a soothing hand through his sleep-fluffed hair.  “I just wish you didn’t have to go all the time, Li.  Sometimes I hate your job, even if you look sexy in that uniform”

Liam chuckled “Yeah?  I look sexy in a giant coat and pants that cover my entire body? Cheers, babe.”

Niall huffed lightly and reached out to latch onto Liam’s larger hand with his own.  “Oh, shut up, you know what I mean,” his face fell as he pulled Liam’s hand up to press kisses to his knuckles, “just be safe, yeah? I know I don’t need to _tell_ you to be careful but… please be careful.”

Liam smiled down at his husband, taking in the soft sleepy features he had fallen in love with all those years ago, and the bright blue eyes that made him fall all over again every single day.  He leaned down and pressed a lingering kiss to his boy’s forehead, murmuring against his skin, “You know I always am, Bug.”

Niall sat up, wrapping his arms around his husband’s waist and laying his cheek over his heart, “I know you are, love.” He took a deep breath. “But when it’s a big one you know I get nervous.”

The bigger man nudged his finger under Niall’s chin and guided his face upward to look at him.  “I know you do, babe.  I’ll see you in a bit, okay? I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Liam,” Niall replied, leaning up further to kiss his husband goodbye before letting him go to grab his bag and head out of their bedroom.  Before he could make it through the threshold, however, Niall called out softly, “Don’t forget to give Briella a kiss!”

Liam hummed an affirmative response before disappearing from the room, only to return seconds later with the sleeping toddler in his arms.  He made his way over to the bed and gently laid her next to her daddy under the covers, pressing a kiss to her head and running a hand through her chestnut brown hair. 

“Didn’t want you to be lonely,” he whispered, though Niall wasn’t sure which one of them he was speaking to.  He then stood, waved one last goodbye, and he was gone. 

Niall sighed and rolled over to pull his sleeping daughter into his chest, burying his face in her hair as she mumbled in her sleep and gripped his sleep shirt in her tiny hand.

“Don’t worry, Bri.  Papa will be alright, he’s good at what he does.  He’ll be back in time for lunch tomorrow, princess.  Maybe we could have chicken nuggets?  I bet you’d like that.  But we’d have to have some veggies too, yeah?  Your papa would be so mad if I didn’t make you eat your veggies.  Your papa is weird.  But we love him anyway don’t we?  Yeah, we do. He’s a good guy.”  Niall continued to quietly ramble to the sleeping two year old, attempting to distract himself until he fell asleep.  He knew if he didn’t keep his mind elsewhere, like on his daughter, it would drift to thoughts and images of what Liam was doing, if he was safe. 

~*~

When Niall woke again hours later, it was to a tiny hand patting his cheek lightly.

“Daddy,” a tiny voice, his favorite tiny voice, called softly, “Daddy up!”

The blond groaned and rubbed a hand over his face, opening his eyes to see his little girl looking at him with Liam’s deep brown eyes.  “Alright, sweet pea Daddy’s up,” he grumbled out in his sleep-roughed voice as he attempted to fully wake himself up.

Briella squealed and clapped her little hands, making Niall smile softly at her. He scooped her up, making her laugh again, and carried her out of his bedroom and downstairs into the kitchen.  It wasn’t until she was sat in her chair at the table and Niall was pouring her cereal that the inevitable question came.

“Where my papa?” she questioned, looking up at her father curiously.  Niall always hated when Liam had to leave in the middle of the night as it was, but seeing the look of disappointment on their daughter’s face when Papa wasn’t at breakfast broke his heart. 

“He had to go to a fire really early this morning, little love.  But he’ll be home soon, don’t worry.” He tried to make it sound as nonchalant as possible as not to worry her.

“Then we play?” She asked hopefully.

“Yeah, sweetheart then we can play.  What should we play?” He asked as he sat down to eat his own cereal.  Frosted Mini Wheats were both their favorites.

Briella hummed thoughtfully as she sloppily took a bite of her breakfast. “Ummm we go outside,” she decided.

“Alright, we can play outside.  Looks like a nice day.  We could eat lunch outside too yeah?  How does that sound lov-“ the shrill ringing of the house phone cut him off mid-sentence. 

Niall froze, concerned that there would only be one person calling the house phone at 8 o’clock on a Sunday morning.  Liam or his mum would have called his mobile.  No one else would have bothered.  Cold tendrils of fearful anxiety coiled in his chest, paralyzing him momentarily as his mind flipped through possibilities of the purpose of this call.  Brief flashes of his brain telling him, logically, it could be Zayn calling to ask if he and Liam wanted to bring Briella over to play, or his brother checking in.  But, not so deep down, he knew otherwise before he even reached for the phone.

Forcing himself into action, he stood up and crossed the room to pick up the phone, press the button, and hold it to his ear.  He cleared his throat, “H-hello?”

“Niall? Niall it’s Harry.  Listen- and don’t freak out okay? Liam got hurt,” the frantic and alarmingly fast-speaking voice crackled through his phone. 

Niall felt cold.  He felt his head spinning and the edges of his vision clouded at the sudden shock of terror stabbing through him like a hot knife through his numbly frozen body.  An icy chill spread down his spine from the back of his neck and seeped throughout his body before he realized he was on the floor.  He sat with his knees to his chest and his back against the dishwasher, phone still in his iron grip next to his ear.  This was his _worst fear_.  Every day when Liam left for the station, every time he had to leave in the middle of the night or during dinner to go to a scene, Niall made sure to kiss him and tell him to be careful.  Just in case.

Just in case of this.

“Ni? Niall? Hey, Niall are you there?  Are you even listening to me?  I told you not to freak out!” Harry’s voice drifted into his thoughts, pulling him back to the present situation with sudden clarity.  He looked up slowly to see Briella sat in her chair at the table, looking at him in curiously, but eating her cereal nonetheless.

“Y-yeah I’m here, Harry. I just… what did you say?”

“The ambulance just left.” _Ambulance?_ “He… God, Ni, he didn’t look good. I’m not really sure what happened, to be honest.  I was outside and then there was a loud crash and Josh had to like, _drag_ him out.  They had him in the ambulance before I could even really get a good look at him but I knew I would be the only one who would think to call you and-“

“Where is he, Harry?” Niall asked numbly, cutting off his friend’s rambling. His own voice sounded foreign to him, as if there was someone else speaking for him.

“Oh… what?”

“What hospital, Harry?” he snapped into the phone, making Briella look over at him with worry and softly call his name.

“Oh, right, St. Mary’s.  I’m on my way right now, do you need me to pick you up then?  I can have Lou watched Bri if you need it, mate,” Harry spoke with a tint of calm reassurance in his voice. 

Glancing over at his daughter, who was still looking at him with deeper concern, he replied “Yeah, Har, that’d be good.”  He spoke softly into the receiver before muttering a farewell and dropping the phone to the floor beside him with a deafening clatter in the eerily silent room.

As the silence overtook him, his breath came even quicker, nearing hyperventilation.  He dropped his head into his hands and tried to take a deep breath to calm himself, feeling his chest tighten and tears fill his eyes.  Images of his husband, his _Liam_ , his _baby,_ lying in a hospital bed broken and bleeding and burned and… not dead. He was alive. He _was_. He had to be.

“God, no” he whispered into his hands.  A small hand on his arm made him jump and look up into his daughter’s scared face.

“Daddy?” he could hear the tears in her voice, signaling she was near crying herself.

“Hey, come here baby,” Niall reached out and pulled her into his lap where she immediately curled against his chest and tightened a hand in his shirt as she always did.  He blinked back tears and took a deep breath and kissed his baby girl’s head, trying to swallow around the lump in his throat and even his breathing as much as possible before speaking again. “Listen, little love.  Papa got in a little trouble at work today, and he got hurt, yeah?  So he’s at the doctor’s, and I’m gonna go see him, and Uncle Louis is gonna come stay with you, alright?”

“Papa okay?”

Niall’s chest tightened and he hugged his girl even tighter.

“Papa will be okay, babe. Let’s go get you dressed and ready for Uncle Lou hmm? Aren’t you excited to see him?” he tried to put as much optimism in his voice as possible, and if she wasn’t two she would have detected the tightness of the force he was putting into it.

Niall only just managed to keep himself together for his daughter as he quickly got her dressed and then changed himself.  Ten minutes later, just as Niall was finishing popping Briella’s DVD of Tangled into the player for her, he heard tires crunching into the driveway signaling the arrival of his friends.

In those ten long minutes, Niall’s mind was racing with images of Liam and trying to prepare himself for what he might see.  Scenarios where Liam was on life support and Niall had to make the decision to let him go.  Or Liam being in a coma for months.  Or waking up without his memory, and not knowing who Niall or Briella were.  Or the one possibility where they just lost him.  Was he alive now?  _Was he already too late to say goodbye?_

The front door pushed open as Louis let himself in, going directly to Niall and wrapping him in a tight hug, letting the younger man sag against him and accept the comfort Louis was doing his best to provide. Louis rubbed circles on his back, holding him tightly as he mumbled a soft _he’ll be alright, mate_ into his blond hair.  Pulling back, Louis flashed him a small, sad smile before turning and smiling his brightest smile to Briella who was running over for a hug.  Harry hung back at the doorway, still wearing half his gear from the scene. 

As Louis settled himself in, Niall kissed and hugged his girl goodbye, all but dragging Harry out of the house, into the car, and to the hospital.  The 15 minute ride to the hospital was excruciating, as Niall was unable to sit still in the passenger seat of Harry’s Range Rover. 

Eventually, they made it into a parking space and inside to the front desk where a pretty nurse sat behind a computer with an open binder of charts sitting in front of her.  She looked up and smiled as the two men entered, looking flustered and rushed.

 “Hi, I’m looking for my husband, Liam Payne.  He’s a fireman I think he probably came in the ER?” he asked her quickly.  She smiled softly as she took a horrendously long time to click around on her computer to find out where Niall’s husband was.

“He’s still in surgery, sir. You can wait in the third floor waiting room.” She told him with a sad smile.

Niall threw a quick thank you over his shoulder as he flew to the elevator and to the third floor with his best friend right behind him.  Once they arrived in the waiting room, Harry went to the nurse’s station to let them know they were waiting for news on one Liam Payne, and asked to be informed of any changes while Niall picked a seat in the back corner and sat down on the uncomfortable plastic cushion.  He let out a long sigh and dropped his head into his hands with his elbows resting on his knees.  He heard approaching footsteps moments later followed by a large hand resting heavily on his shoulder.

“He’ll be fine, Nialler. I promise.  He’s gotta be. However good or bad he’s doing right now, he’ll pull out of it for you and Briella. He would never leave you, yeah?” the curly-haired man assured him softly.

Niall sighed deeply, leaning over to lean against his friend.  ‘”I hope you’re right, Har.”

***

An hour of nervously shaking his knee and intermittent pacing around the waiting room found Niall and Harry without any news on Liam.  The sound of footsteps drew their attention to the hallway on the left, bringing both men to whip their heads in that direction in time to see a dark haired man in black skinny jeans, combat boots, and a leather jacket nearly sprinting into the room.

“Zayn! Oh God, Zayn, thank God,” Niall jumped out of his seat and met Zayn halfway across the room, crashing into the hug Zayn’s arm were open wide for.

“Jesus Christ, Niall what the fuck is happening?” Zayn’s voice shook as he hugged Niall tight and looked over to Harry.

“We don’t know anything, mate,” Harry replied as he got up as well and pulled Zayn into a hug once he had let go of the blond. “We’ve been here and hour and so far they haven’t told us a thing.”

As the three sat back down in their chairs as Zayn let out a long sigh.  “Fuck, I can’t believe this happened.  Like, obviously it’s dangerous job and it happens but like… I never thought it’d happen to him,” he wiped at his eyes that had grown red around the rims and looked down at his hands.

“Yeah,” Niall choked out as the knot in his chest grew, “neither did I.”

Zayn just rubbed his back and let the younger man cry softly into the material of his jacket.

***

“Ni. Nialler c’mon mate wake up,” Niall slowly floated up from the depths of sleep to open his eyes to the sound of a low rocky voice calling his name.  When he opened his eyes he was momentarily blinded by the fluorescent white all around him, and his neck screamed in pain from the stiff angle it was resting at.  Harry was there gently nudging his shoulder to wake him up.  “Mate, the doctor is here.”

With that Niall sat up straight, opening his eyes wide as he suddenly remembered where they were and why. Liam was hurt.

“Did I fall asleep?” he asked, looking back and forth between his two friends sat on either side of him, “How long was I out? Is Liam okay?” he directed the last question at the tall man stood in front of them in a long white coat and kind eyes.

“Hello, Mr. Payne, I’m Dr. Cardona.  I’ve been looking after your husband this afternoon,” the man said kindly, extending a hand toward Niall, which the blond stood to shake firmly.

“Dear God, please tell me he’s okay,” he pleaded.

The doctor looked down momentarily before meeting Niall’s eyes again, causing Niall’s heart to stutter in his chest painfully.  The brief flash over the older man’s face gave away the nature of Liam’s injuries.

“Well, Mr. Payne, let me start off by telling you he’ll be alright,” Niall sagged in relief and let out a deep sigh, mimicked immediately by the two boys on his sides.  “However, he was in pretty bad shape when we got here,” as the doctor lifted the clipboard in his hand and read off several items written there, Niall felt Zayn’s hand slip around his wrist for support, “he had massive internal bleeding in his abdomen, but that’s been taken care of.  He had some head trauma but nothing too serious, just a concussion that should clear up without a problem.  Surprisingly he only had a few first degree burns along his left arm and shoulder, which should heal without too much scarring. Nearly his entire left side was crushed so we’ve got his broken ribs setting, and his arm is all casted –I hope he likes blue- and as for his left leg… I’m very sorry, Mr. Payne but it was completely crushed, and we could only save so much of it.”

Niall stared at the man, the words not clicking in his head.  _Save?_   What did he mean by _save?_   He couldn’t _save_ his leg…? He couldn’t save his leg.  Oh.

Something stabbed through Niall’s chest and pulled down through his stomach, spreading out to his limbs through his veins and filling his body with a heavy sense of dread that sent him stumbling sideways and crashing into Harry’s strong side.  Luckily the taller boy caught him easily and sat him down on the chair he had been occupying for the last few hours.

“What… what do you mean you _could only save so much of his leg_? What happened to it? It’s gone? What does that _mean_? I just… I don’t…” He drifted off in a broken sentence, his breath coming in short, shallow gasps and his hands running up into his hair to tug at the blond strands. 

“Hey, hey come on Niall he’s gonna be alright, yeah?  The doc said so. He’ll be fine, mate.  Breathe, Ni,” Harry’s slow drawl sounded in the background of his mind, as the blood rushing through his ears took the main stage.

“I’m very sorry, Mr. Payne,” the doctor offered sincerely, “We did everything we could.  In the end, we had to focus on the other issues at hand as well, and it just wasn’t possible.  But as I said, and as your friend said, he will be fine.  He’ll be able to go home within the next few weeks.”

“Can we see him?” Zayn asked the doctor.

“Of course.  He’s asleep right now, but should be awake soon enough.  I can take you to his room when you’re ready,” he replied easily.

“Are you ready, Niall?” Harry asked him softly.  Niall scoffed. As if he didn’t want to see Liam as soon as possible. He took a deep shuddering breath and rose to his feet, wiping away the tears he hadn’t realized were falling.

“Let’s go.”

The walk to Liam’s room was short and tense.  Niall could only imagine how his husband would look lying in a hospital bed, broken and… not whole.

When the boys arrived at the room and turn into the threshold, Niall’s mildly surprised to find it dark.  He had expected the same cold white light to fill Liam’s room that was found in the rest of the building.  Instead, the room was mostly dark, a soft warm light illuminating Liam’s sleeping frame from a lamp on his bedside table.  If he hadn’t looked too closely from his post at the door, and hadn’t known that Liam was injured, Niall would have assumed he was just taking a nap. 

However, Niall did know Liam was hurt. And even from the doorway he could see the bandage wrapped around Liam’s head, the bulky blue cast keeping his arm at a right angle, and the oxygen tube under his nose. His feet instantly pulled him over to the side of the bed where he took a shuddering breath and looked over his husband’s face.  The left side of his face was bruised, a dark purple mark beginning on his jaw and travelling upward across his cheekbone and disappearing under the bandage wrapped around his head.  The soft puffing of his breath through the oxygen tube and the steady beeping of the heart monitor were the only sounds in Niall’s ears, ringing through his brain and bouncing around his skull to spark through his synapses and settle deep on his bones.  He couldn’t bring himself to pull his eyes from the battered face, because he knew if he looked down his body it would appear normal under the blanket, but he knew there was a piece missing.

“Hi, baby,” he whispered softly and reached down to gently take Liam’s uncasted hand in his own, squeezing his fingers three times to say _I love you_ as they always did. He sat down slowly on the chair beside the bed and ran his fingers over his husband’s knuckles.  He felt the tears prickle his eyes once again as he took in the state of his Liam.  “You asshole, you promised me,” he tried to make it sound fond and good natured, but it came out choked and devastated.

A gentle hand laid on Niall’s shoulder and gave a firm squeeze.  The blond turned his head to look up at Zayn and give him a watery smile.  The older man looked down and smiled sadly at his friend, and turned his attention to the one laying in the bed, a grim look of fear and sadness on his face.  His dark eyebrows were pulled together in an angry worried expression, but his eyes were wide and wet and his jaw was set tight. Niall knew as much as this was killing him, it was hurting their friends almost as much. 

“Zayn won’t say so, because he’s all stoic and shit, but he’ll lose it if you don’t wake up soon, Li.  He needs you, ya know?  I… we all need you okay?” Niall whispered around the lump in his throat while he continued to brush Liam’s hand with his fingers.  “Your daughter needs you too.  A princess needs her king, yeah?  And I need you.  So fucking much.  The doctor said you’ll be okay, and he better be right, love.  And don’t think you’ll get out of this without getting your ass beat because you _promised_ me and you broke a promise.  So you need to get better so I can yell at you.”

Harry huffed a small laugh from the other side of the bed and added, “Yeah that’ll make him want to wake up and get better.”

“Shut up, Styles,” Zayn mumbled, “don’t get in the middle of their spat.”

Niall allowed himself a small smile and an even smaller laugh at that.  He leaned up and pressed a soft, gentle kiss to the side of Liam’s unbruised cheek and brushed his fingers across the prickly stubble.

“I love you so much.”

***

Most people hate hospitals.  The smell is unpleasant, the lights are harsh, and the constant symphony of different pitches of beeps is unsettling.  Not to mention that people die here.  Often.  Time spent in a hospital is rarely on a good occasion.  Overall, the whole _hospital_ thing just freaks people out. 

But Niall’s never had a personal hatred for them. 

He’d only ever really had to be in the hospital twice.  Once when he broke his leg falling out of a tree when he was 10.  He spent the two days he was there eating Jell-O and watching cartoons, and skipping school.  It wasn’t as scarring as a hospital stay could be.

The second time was years later, when their little girl was born.  And that, easily, had been the best day of Niall’s life.

_After the initial shock of the phone call letting Niall and Liam know that their surrogate, Jordan, had gone into labor, it was a hectic half hour before they actually saw her.  They’d rushed around the house making sure to grab the ready bag by the door, double, triple, and quadruple checking to make sure they had a few onesies, diapers, blankets, bottles, and whatever else Liam had insisted they needed (but probably didn’t) to bring their baby home.  That was followed by a nervous ride to the hospital in which Niall kept fiddling with the radio and tapping his fingers against his leg as Liam drove with his knuckles white around the wheel._

_“Hey,” Niall mumbled when he realized how tense Liam was, “relax, okay?  Everything’s gonna be fine, love.”_

_Liam nodded and reached one hand over to grasp Niall’s across the center console and squeezed it three times in an_ I love you. _“I know.  I’m like excited but nervous, ya know?”_

_“Yeah, babe, I know.” Niall squeezed back, “Ready to meet our little girl?”_

_Liam’s returning smile was blinding as he sent a quick glance over to his husband._

_“So fucking ready.”_

_Once they got to the hospital and found the room Jordan and her mother were in, things settled down.  They had hours yet until the baby would actually arrive.  So they waited._

_And waited._

_And waited._

_Until it was time for Jordan to push._

_Hours after arriving the hospital, after months of waiting and years of planning and dreaming, a shrill screech filled the air and Niall’s knees went weak.  A gasp left Liam’s lips as a strong arm shot around Niall’s waist to keep him upright._

_“Here she is!” The doctor cooed as a nurse suctioned out the baby’s mouth and nose.  “Who wants her first?”_

_Niall immediately stepped forward to take the squawking bundle from the doctor, gently easing her into his arms and situating the blanket she was wrapped in so he could get a clear view of her small face._

_“Hey, little lady,” he whispered to his daughter, “I’m your daddy.”_

_He felt the warm, familiar presence of Liam behind him, setting a hand on his waist and reaching a hand over to stroke the baby’s tiny arm._

_“Hi, sweet pea.  I’m your papa,” he whispered, and Niall could hear the thickness of his voice, a telltale sign he was close to tears._

_“Don’t worry about your papa, baby girl.  He’s a crier.  He’ll be alright though,” he leaned down and kissed the wriggling baby’s head and hugged her gently to his chest, then turned his head slightly to glance at his husband’s red-rimmed eyes.  “I thought you weren’t going to cry?  Bad first impression and all that.”_

_“Oh, stop,” Liam let out a sound that was a mix of a laugh and a sob, “You know how I am.  And she’s… she’s just so perfect, Niall.  So little and perfect and beautiful and…” he trailed off and kissed the baby’s head where his husband just had, and then turn to kiss his temple._

_“Ours?”_

_“Yeah, ours.  Our perfect little princess.”_

_“And our perfect little family.”_

_The next few days had been exhausting, constantly changing diapers and learning how to feed the baby properly and having family flutter in and out of the house to meet the new addition.  It was tiring but beautiful all the same.  The boys finally had the family they’d been dreaming of and trying for years.  And what could ruin that?_

Niall smiled fondly at the memory.  He squeezed Liam’s hand again and looked up at the bruised face from where he had his own head laying on the edge of the bed.  He sighed sadly, letting the brief moment of happiness swelling his chest to dissipate and the ball of anxiety and sadness to take over again.  He sighed and tried to think again of the happiness of his daughter and his husband and his family, because it’s not as if any of that was gone, really.  Just a little off-kilter at the moment.  But it’d be alright.  It had to be.

***

When Liam woke up it wasn’t like in the movies.  He didn’t flutter his eyelashes open and call Niall’s name.  He didn’t squeeze Niall’s hand and groan and ask where he was.  It was gradual, and a little frightening for the three boys watching it happen. 

First, his right arm twitched slightly and stiffened, and the heart monitor sped up.  Alarmed, Niall, Zayn, and Harry all looked up to his face to find his eyes stilled closed, but his mouth was open slightly as small, shallow breaths huffed in and out.

“Liam?” Niall called tentatively.

Niall’s heart jumped as Liam’s eyes snapped open and he stared directly at the ceiling, unmoving.

“Harry, go get the nurse,” Zayn mumbled as he approached the bed on the other side.

“Liam?  Baby can you hear me?” Niall grew worried, standing to look over his husband’s face.

“Yeah.”  Liam’s voice was quiet and scratchy.

“Good, good,” Niall answered, unsure what else to do or say.

“Liam, mate, can you look at us?” Zayn asked softly, setting a gentle hand on Liam’s casted arm.  Liam flicked his eyes down from the ceiling to look at Niall. “Good, that’s good, Li.  Harry’s gone to get the nurse.  Do you know where you are?  Can you remember what happened?”

“I... I don’t know. I think so.”  He looked over to Niall pleadingly, thought what he was asking for, the blond wasn’t sure.

Niall squeezed Liam’s hand and settled his other hand on the older man’s shoulder.

“That’s okay, babe.  We’ll explain in a bit, alright?  Once the nurse checks you out we’ll explain,” the blond did his best to reassure him to keep him from panicking.

“Am I okay?  Am I gonna die?” Liam asked, swallowing thickly to try and tame the dry scratchiness of his voice, and tried to pull his hand from Niall’s and reach up to touch the tube across his face.  The heart monitor sped up again.

“No!  No love you’re fine, you’ll be fine okay?  Try to calm down just wait for the nurse,” Niall scrambled to take hold of Liam’s hand once again, gently pulling it down and away from his face.  He pulled it up to kiss the knuckles and run his other hand up and down Liam’s upper arm.

The nurse came in quickly, followed by Harry.  She checked his vitals and shined a light around in his eyes like Niall had seen in the movies, and asked him several questions.

“Do you know where you are, Mr. Payne?”

“The hospital.”

“That’s right, St. Mary’s.  Do you know what the date is?”

“Um… it’s June.”

“Very good.  Alright and do you know all these guys right here?”

Liam slowly turned his head over to look at Niall, Harry, and Zayn.

 “Yeah, it’s my husband and my friends.”

“Okay, and do you remember what happened?”

“Um…” Liam looked back to Niall, “I think so. I know it was at work.”

“Alright, very good.  Well, I’m about finished so the doctor will be right in to explain things, okay?” She smiled sadly and flipped around the papers on her clipboard and turned to leave.

“Why does everyone keep looking at me like that?” Liam asked quietly.  Niall reached down to squeeze his hand and opened his mouth to respond when a voice in the doorway cut them off.

“Hello, Mr. Payne.  Glad to see you awake.  I’m Dr. Cardona, how are you feeling?” the man asked kindly.

“Um. I don’t know,” he rasped, “stiff? And kinda light headed? Confused.”

The doctor huffed a small laugh and rested his hand on the back of the chair.

“That’ll happen.  As long as there’s no pain we’ll be fine.”  The man’s dark eyes changed from the gentle, caring smile to something more serious and concerning. It was the same look he’d given Niall in the waiting room hours earlier. 

And then Niall knew what was coming.

The doctor sighed and looked down at the clipboard in his hand, resolutely avoiding eye contact with the man in the bed.  It was then that Niall decided he hated the man.  Liam was about to receive the worst and most life-altering news he had ever gotten, and the doctor couldn’t even look at him.  No warm, reassuring smile to let him know it’d be okay, no strong eye contact to convey the hope and good promise Niall so wished he could send.  Nothing.

“Let’s talk about your injuries,” the doctor spoke, eyes still focused on his papers.  Harry and Zayn shuffled out of the room in Niall’s peripheral vision, and Liam glanced nervously over at Niall who squeezed his hand and pulled it up to kiss his knuckles.  Dr. Cardona listed off the things he’d told Niall earlier, and though his tone stayed light Niall knew what was coming at the end, and he found his blue eyes trained on his husband’s face to gage his reaction when he found out. “And, there is one last thing, Mr. Payne.”

“Liam.”

“Alright, Liam, well, when you were brought to us, your left leg was fractured in a few places, and from the knee down it was completely crushed.  We did as much as we could, and as I told your husband, we had other injuries to worry about as well.  We saved as much of your leg as possible, but… I’m sorry we weren’t able to save all of it.  I’m very, very sorry.” He finished sincerely, finally looking up at Liam. 

Looking at Liam’s face, Niall was confused.  He didn’t even _have_ a reaction.  At least not at first.  At first, he stared blankly at the doctor as if he hadn’t been speaking at all.  Then, slowly, he looked over at Niall, then down at his hands, smirked a tiny bit, and shook his head slightly.

“No.”

“Pardon me?” The doctor asked.

Liam looked up sharply, “No. Just no.” His face quickly morphed into anger, his dark eyebrows pulling together low along his forehead, and his jaw tightening, and his nostrils flaring.  He looked back down at his lap and gripped Niall’s hand painfully tightly, and gritted his teeth to grind out another _no_.

“Liam, baby, it’s-“

“No, Niall!  I just… no. That can’t be true.  It’s not. It’s just _not_!” he squeezed his eyes shut and let out a short huff of air.  “Please don’t let it be true.”

“Sweetheart, I’m so sorry,” Niall’s voice was choked with tears as he stroked his husband’s forearm.  As much as he was heartbroken over his husband’s injury, seeing Liam’s reaction had made it impossibly worse.  Stupidly, selfishly, Niall had hardly considered what this would mean for Liam.

Taking a deep breath and letting go of Niall’s hand, Liam lifted the blanket across his lower half and peeked underneath to see for himself.  He whispered a muffled _fuck_ and the angry expression darkening his face fell immediately to one of shocked terror.  Tears filled his unmoving eyes and the heart monitor sped up again.

“Niall,” he whimpered, “it’s gone.”

“I know, love.”

“Oh my god, it’s gone.”

“Liam, babe, it’ll be alright, okay?  I promise everything will work, we’ll figure it out, love.”

He dropped the sheet, took in a shallow, shuddering breath, and closed his eyes which caused the tears to roll down his cheeks.  Niall’s heart shattered in his chest.

“Oh, love,” he mumbled and sat on the edge of the bed to gently kiss Liam’s cheek.

“I was going to be _chief_ , Niall,” Liam whispered, eyes still closed and fists still clenched.  “I was… everything’s _gone_.”

“Liam, sweetheart, it’ll be alright.  I know how bad you wanted it but there are other things, yeah?  We’ll figure this out.  The important thing is you’re still here.” Niall tried his best to sound sincere.  Although he did know what he was saying was true; all the mattered was that his husband was still alive and was going to be alright, he was devastated for the older man.  He knew how badly Liam had been working to be chief and how badly he’d always wanted it. 

“N-Niall...” Liam sobbed and leaned his head softly into Niall’s chest, “this can’t be happening.”

The blond gently cradled his husband in his arms and kissed the top of his head.

“We’ll figure this out, baby.  Everything will be okay.”

 

***

Niall didn’t leave the hospital for three days.  It was on the third day Louis had nearly dragged him out of Liam’s hotel room and force him into a cab so that he would go home and “take a bloody shower and stop stinking up the room”.  Niall had only gone when Louis promised he and Zayn would be with Liam until he got back.

Niall loved them.  They had come in everyday, at least once, to visit Liam.  Zayn brought in clothes for Niall to change into as well as his laptop and some DVDs for the couple to watch at night, as the hospital TV was rather shit.  The boys helped distract Liam with their dumb jokes and banter, and kept the mood as light-hearted as possible.  After they would leave, however, Liam’s sullen mood would return, and as hard as Niall tried, he had to admit it was taking him over as well.  He longed to be home and asleep in his own bed, curled up with his husband and their little girl.  Sleeping on a row of the chairs in the hospital room was less that comfortable, but sleeping in Liam’s bed with him put him at risk for further injury.  And honestly, Niall was just grateful for the kind older nurse who pretended not to notice that he stayed past visiting hours, and told the other nurses to let him be.  He didn’t know how anyone would expect him to leave Liam alone there all night, and was just glad to be with him.

As soon as Niall opened the front door to his house, the sound of tiny feet flying across the floor made his heart swell.

“Daddy!” the shrill cry came at the same time a small body collided with his legs. “Daddy! Up!”

Niall immediately smiled and bent down to swoop the child into his arms and hugs her tightly as she wrapped her small arms around his neck.

“Hi, baby girl,” he kissed her head and swayed her back and forth, “were you good for your uncles?”

“I’m good!”

“She was perfect, as always,” Harry’s low voice came from the doorway to the kitchen. 

Niall smiled at his friend and walked farther into his house, not letting go of his daughter.

“Thank you so much, Haz. I couldn’t have done this without you and Lou. I know it’d be easier if she could stay at yours but you know how she is about strange places and I just thought it would-“

“Niall.  Please. We don’t mind a bit and you know it.  We’re more than happy to help. And she’s a sweetheart.”

Niall smiled warmly at that, giving Briella one more tight squeeze and another kiss to the top of her head.  “That she is.  Did you miss me, baby girl?”  
“Yeah, Daddy!” she squealed, “Why gone?”

Niall smiled sadly.

“I had to stay at the doctor with your papa, babe.  He’s still sick.”

“Want Papa,” she pouted, laying her head on Niall’s shoulder and sighing. 

“I know, Bri.  He’ll be home in a few days, okay?”

“No, want Papa now” she whined.  “I go.”

“No, love. You have to stay here with Uncle Harry.”

“No!” She began to kick her feet, “Want my Papa!”

“Bri, stop.” Niall sighed, setting her down on her feet where she clung to his leg.

“Daddy, want Papa!”

“Ni, why don’t you take her in to see him for a bit? I can come with and bring her back home,” Harry mumbled to his friend.

“Mate, I don’t know. I don’t want her to get scared, ya know? The bruises on his face are at that gross yellowish stage. I don’t want her to see him like that,” Niall said quietly as Briella rubbed her face over his leg and whined.

“But think how happy he’d be to see her.  He’s been so sad, Ni. Let him see his little princess.”

Niall thought about it.  Liam didn’t have the oxygen tube anymore, and the bandages on his head had been removed to show a shaved patch on his left temple and a line of dark black sutures above his ear.  The once dark black and blue bruise across his face had begun to turn yellow and purple as it healed.  And Liam himself was just… sad. Quiet. Forlorn.  Everything Liam shouldn’t be and his daughter shouldn’t see.

“I don’t know, Har.  I’m gonna go shower. I’ll think about it.”

***

After a long, long, hot shower, Niall dragged himself into the kitchen in his sweatpants and plopped down heavily in a chair at the kitchen table.  Harry was standing at the kitchen counter in front of a bowl of batter and the waffle iron while Briella sat on the edge of the counter, swinging her tiny socked feet.

“Waffle?” Harry asked. Niall nodded.  “I talked to Josh.”

“Oh?” Niall asked, poking at his waffle.

“Yeah.  He told me what happened.  If you want to hear it.”

“Um… Yeah I guess so.  It can’t hurt at this point.”

Harry chuckled, “That’s the spirit.”

“Daddy!  Pancake!” Briella demanded while pointing to the bowl of batter.

Niall laughed a little, “No, love, waffles.  But close enough.  Can you go into your room for a few minutes? Then your waffle will be ready.”

She sighed dramatically and reached up for Harry to set her on the ground.  Niall _really_ needed to get her away from Louis.  The drama and sass was rubbing off, and he didn’t really need a sassy toddler in his home. 

“Thank you, Bri.” Niall ruffled her hair as she pranced by, then turned to look at Harry.  “So?”

Harry pulled out a chair and sat beside Niall at the table, “There’s not much to say, really.  Liam trying to be a hero again.  There was a woman still inside, and the chief said no one should go in, because the supports were too damaged, but Liam said we couldn’t just leave her and… I mean he was right but he shouldn’t have gone.  But he did. And Josh went with him.  And they got her out, Liam always does, but he tried got separated from Josh and the woman when a beam fell.  I guess he tried to go around it but he got caught and another one came down on top of him, and Josh had to get it off him and drag him out as fast as possible.  It wasn’t pretty when I saw him, Ni, but I can’t imagine what I would have done in Josh’s situation.  I would have panicked.  It’s just different when it’s someone you know.”

“Yeah,” Niall responded dumbly.  He wasn’t sure how to take it all.  Of course, his Liam was never one to leave somebody behind, and of _course_ he wouldn’t listen to the chief if someone needed help.  But it was hard to think about what could have happened if Josh hadn’t gone back, or if Harry had been the one in his place and frozen on the spot. 

Harry patted him on the shoulder and stood back up, “But he’s gonna be alright yeah? Well, most of him.”

“Not funny, Har.”

“Right, sorry mate.”

“S’fine.” Niall took a bite of his waffle.

“so, have you thought about letting Bri go see her papa?”

“Yeah. I might as well.  He’s not going to be back to normal any time soon, so she might as well see him now, yeah?  I think it’ll only hurt her more to keep her away from him.”

“My thoughts exactly.” Harry turned and smiled, “She’ll be so happy to see him, she might not even notice his bruises.”

Niall smiled and took another bite. He could only hope.

***

As he walked through the halls of the hospital with his daughter on his hip, the ball of anxiety in Niall’s stomach grew.  He kissed the side of her head one last time before stepping into Liam’s room, where he, Zayn, and Louis were sat with cards splayed out on the table over Liam’s lap.

“Knock knock!” He called.

Liam looked up from his hand of cards and _beamed_.

“Bri!” He called and held up his good arm.

Niall smiled and moved closer to sit on the edge of the bed with his daughter in his lap.  He looked down at her, and his heart dropped.  She tucked herself closer into his chest and hid her face, peeking out to look over at Liam and scrunching her face in worry.

“Babe?” Liam asked, letting his arm drop back down and furrowing his brow, “It’s ok, it’s Papa”

“No,” she whined, turning her face back completely into Niall’s chest and fisting his shirt in her hand, “Daddy.”

“Hey, love,” Niall bounced her slightly and rubbed his nose against the top of her head, “remember how I told you Papa got hurt at work? So he’s got some bruises on his face, but he’s still your papa.”

“Yeah, sweet pea, I’m still your papa” Liam insisted, reaching out and grabbing her tiny hind in his large one.

She peeked out from Niall’s chest once again, looking down at Liam’s hand and then up at his face.  “Papa boo boos?”

Liam smiled and stroked the back of her hand, “Yeah, little love, I’ve got some boo boos.”

She crawled out of Niall’s lap and onto Liam, and Niall held his breath and waited for Liam to cry out in pain.  He flinched, but that was all, as he hugged his little girl with his good arm and kissed her head, breathing in the scent of her hair.  “Papa missed you so much, sweet pea.”

“Miss my papa!” She squealed, pulling back to give him a slobbery kiss on his unbruised cheek. “Love you!”

Liam smiled and tickled her belly, “And I love you!”

“Ahem!” Niall said, raising an eyebrow, “And who loves me?”

“I do!” Zayn called, wrapping his arms around Niall and hugging him.  The blond laughed and shoved the older man off.  He’d forgotten those two were even there.

“Uncle Zayn, no,” Briella scolded, “Only Papa.”

“Yeah, Uncle Zayn, only Papa can love Daddy.” Liam said, holding back a laugh.

The afternoon was spent playing cards when Harry showed up as well, and Niall tracking down colored pens and paper for Briella to make Liam a get well soon picture.  Liam loved the scribbled mess she made for him (which she claimed was a doctor duck) and had Niall tape it to the wall across from his bed.  It was the most lively Liam had been since the accident, and Niall’s heart was near bursting with happiness and love for his family.

Just before dinnertime, the other three left the family alone to watch a movie together on Liam’s laptop.  Briella decided on Lilo and Stitch, and curled up in Liam’s side and ate his pudding. 

At around 7 o’clock, after Briella had yawned one too many times, Niall decided it was best he take her home. 

“Alright, you, time to go home and go to sleep,” he said as he stood and stretched.

“Daddy, no!” She whined and clung to Liam’s uncasted arm.

“Yes, little lady. You can see Papa again tomorrow.”

“Wait, Ni,” Liam sat up a little straighter and tightened his arm around the little girl, “Papa has something to show her, yeah?”

“Liam…”

“It’s fine, babe.” He shut his eye for a moment and took a deep breath. “Bri, love, you know how Papa was in an accident at work?”

She nodded and laid her cheek against his shoulder.

“Well, when it happened, my foot got hurt really bad.  It got hurt so bad that the doctors couldn’t help anymore, and they had to do a surgery to take it off.  You understand?”

“Um I don’t know,” she replied with her little eyebrows furrowed together so much like Liam.

Liam took another deep breath and Niall took his hand, “Okay. Well.” He pulled back the blanket and moved his leg out from under the sheet to show what was left of his leg, with white bandages wrapped tightly around the stump which ended halfway down his shin.

“Papa no foot!” Briella gasped.

“That’s what I was trying to tell you, love.  The doctors had to take it off because it was hurt so bad.” Liam murmured into her hair, squeezing his eye shut.

“Like Hiccup!” She exclaimed, turning to look up at Liam’s face.

“What?”

“Like Hiccup, Papa!  Have fake foot!”

Niall saw the realization dawn on Liam’s face the same moment it did for him.  Liam smiled a small, sad smile, and kissed the top of her head. “Yeah, sweet pea, just like Hiccup.  But my fake foot won’t be stone, yeah?  That would hurt if I kicked someone, now wouldn’t it?”

She giggled and hugged Liam, “Not kick, Papa!”

“No, I don’t kick anyone, that’s mean,” he smiled.

“Good!” She leaned up and kissed his cheek on more time and yawned.

“Yep, time for you to go home, little girl.” Niall scooped her up into his arm and bent down to kiss his husband, “I’ll be back once I get her settled into bed, alright?”

“Babe, stay home with her.  I’m a big boy, I can handle the night alone.  I’m just going to be sleeping, yeah?  Be with her, she needs you more.” Liam insisted as he squeezed his husband’s hand and returned his kiss.

Niall sighed, “Alright, but I’ll be back first thing in the morning.  And you call me before you go to sleep so we can say a proper goodnight.”

Liam smiled, “Of course, babe.  Love you.”

***

The next few days were spent, again, at the hospital.  This time, however, Briella’s presence brightened the room considerably and by the day Liam was discharged, he was nearly back to his old cheerful self.  The final day at the hospital was spent getting Liam fitted for a prosthetic leg, during which Briella sat outside with her Uncle Louis and Liam squeezed Niall’s hand as he tried his best to hold back tears.  He failed to do so, and ended up sniffling his way through the whole process.

By the end of the day, everyone was tired and Liam was emotionally drained as he let Niall wheel him to the car and help him inside.  He was sent home with a referral to a physical therapy center where Niall would have to take him daily until he was used to living with his new prosthetic leg.  The cast on his arm was now littered with scribbles of all colors, as Briella had insisted on making it _pretty_ for him.  The bruises on his face were nearly unnoticeable now, and his hair was growing in nicely over the scar on the side of his head.  All in all, Liam was looking more himself every day, and Niall couldn’t have been happier. 

Zayn drove behind them all the way back to their house and helped Niall get Liam inside and onto the pull out couch, where Niall had made up a bed for Liam to sleep in until he could get up and down the stairs. 

“All set, lads?” He asked as he set down Liam’s duffle at the end of his temporary bed.

“I think so.  Stay for dinner, Zayn?” Niall asked.

“You know I couldn’t say no to that,” Zayn grinned and sat on the bed Liam was currently on, and leaned against the back, “I think I’ll watch some TV with my boy here. Bye Niall. Go make dinner.”

Niall shook his head, “You’re lucky there’s a child in the room, Malik.”

“Love you, mate!” Zayn called as the blond made his way into the kitchen and began making dinner.

***

The first few days at home were hard for the Payne family.  While Briella didn’t seem to mind and just spent time coloring and watching cartoons and playing with her toys with her Papa, Niall was drowning in stress.  He’d slept downstairs with Liam at night and driven him back and forth to physical therapy, but his vacation days were running out and he knew he would have to go back to work soon, and Liam was nowhere near ready to be home alone.  He’d been getting better at standing for longer periods and was well on his way to being able to walk almost normally, albeit slowly.  He voiced his thoughts one night after Briella had been put to bed and the couple were snuggled up on the pull out couch watching Game of Thrones. 

“I have to go back to work soon.” He stated simply.

“Yeah, I kinda figured.”

“I don’t want to.”

“I know.  It’ll be alright, though, babe. It’s not like you’d be gone all the time.  Just a few hours a day.”

“I don’t want to leave you here alone, Li.  And how are you going to get to therapy?”

Liam tightened the arm he had wrapped around the smaller boy and pulled him closer.

“Babe. I’ll be fine. If I need something I can call Louis. I can change my appointment times so you can pick me up after work. Don’t stress over this okay?” he kissed the blond hair.

“That’s likely.” Niall scoffed.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Liam pulled back and looked at him in confusion.

“I’m _so_ fucking stressed I don’t think I’ll ever be able not to.  There’s so much shit going on and I’m just so stressed all the time, Liam.  I need a three day nap.  I know the last time I said that we had a screaming infant but this time I might as well.”

“What?  Sorry my literal _loss of limb_ is so fucking hard on you, Niall.” Liam’s voice began to rise as he glared at his husband.

“Liam, no, babe you know that’s now what I mean-“

“No, I know perfectly _well_ what you meant.  That since I’m a fucking invalid you’re just _so_ stressed from having to help me around now and then.  Sorry to bothering you with my _near death experience_.”  Liam shifted himself into a sitting position at the edge of the bed and reached down to slide the cusp of the prosthetic onto the end of what was left of his leg. 

“Liam, come on, no.” Niall put his hand on his husband’s shoulder only to be shaken off, “Liam, I didn’t mean to upset you I know how hard this is on you but you’ve got to know it’s been hard on me as well.  I know you’ve got it so much worse but that doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to be tired and stressed by it too.”

“Whatever, Niall.  Sorry for being such a fucking inconvenience.” Liam slowly pushed himself into a standing position and reached for his cane, slowly making his way out of the living room and into the kitchen.

“Jesus Christ. _Liam!”_ Niall groaned and stood as well, following the older man into the next room.  He caught up quickly, and immediately wrapped his arms around the man’s broad torso from behind, laying his cheek against Liam’s shoulder blade.  “Would you just stop and listen to me?”

“No.”  Liam answered, but stopped nonetheless.

“Li, babe.  I know what I said was so insensitive and I’m so sorry.  But I _am_ tired and I’m stressed, but for you.  I’m stressed and scared and sad because I know _you’re_ hurting and I can’t fucking do anything to help you.  You have no idea what it’s like to see the person you love more than anything in the world have the light die in their eyes and just have that sad, hopeless look on their face, and know there’s absolutely nothing you can do to fix it.  I want to fix it, Li.  I’d do anything.  _Give_ anything for this to all go away and be back to normal, because I want my fucking husband back.”  Liam turned in Niall’s arms and wrapped an arm around the smaller man’s shoulders, holding him close, “I want to be able to sleep in our bed and watch you carry around our daughter and run around with her and play in the background and have you come back from work happy and excited because you fucking _saved_ someone’s life.  I want you to go back to yourself.  I love you so much, and you know I will no matter what and I’ll do anything to make this easier for you, babe.  Just tell me and I’ll do it.”

There was a heavy silence as Niall took a deep breath and buried his nose in Liam’s strong chest. 

“Just love me, Niall.” He whispered into the blonde’s hair.  “Just bear with me while I get used to this and try your best not to get too frustrated with me.  I know I’ve been moping, and I’ve been trying but I just… I don’t know how to accept this.  Or work with this.  Just promise me you won’t give up on me, okay?”

“Oh, god, no, Liam.  Not ever.  Are you kidding me? You think a lack of a fucking _foot_ is going to change anything? I’ll _always_ be here for you, and with you, no matter what happens. Jesus, you’re thick you know that?”

Liam chuckled into Niall’s hair and tightened his arm around him, “Yeah, maybe.”

“God.  Get your ass into bed. It’s late, and Briella’s going to be up in like five hours.  It’s your turn to make her breakfast I’m gonna sleep in.”

Liam laughed again and tilted the smaller boy’s chin up to place a kiss on his lips.  “Love you.”

“Yeah, yeah, love you too.”

***

“Briella Louise, I swear to God if we’re late for the first day you’re grounded for the rest of your life!”

Niall tapped his foot impatiently at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for the rest of the family to get down the stairs and into the car so they could get their daughter so her first day of kindergarten on time. 

She came thundering down the stairs, Mini Mouse backpack in hand, and jumped off the last step to stand right in front of her father.

“It was Papa’s fault, Daddy!  He did my hair for too long!”  She protested.

“Yeah, love, it was Papa’s fault.  Sorry.”  Liam came down the stairs behind her, carrying 18 month old Danny on his hip.

“Well, in that case, Papa’s grounded.  Now get your butts in the car.” Niall groaned in and overly dramatic tone, taking Danny out of Liam’s arms so he could put on his shoes.

“Race ya, Papa!” Briella cried, and took off for the front door and before Niall could look up, she was gone. 

“Oh, you’re on little girl!”  Liam called back, standing up and sprinting out of the house with one shoe untied. 

Niall was scared as hell to send his little girl to school.  She was growing up way too fast for him.  But she was excited, and Liam was nervous enough for the both of them, so Niall was trying to keep a level head.  With Liam back at the firehouse and his little girl starting school, life seemed just a little crazy at the moment.  Deciding to have another baby was Liam’s idea, though Niall needed very little convincing.  Maybe it wasn’t the best timing they could have picked, but they managed.  They always managed.  Nothing slowed them down for long.

It took a lot of physical therapy and time and adjustment for Liam to get back on his feet, both figuratively and literally.  Thankfully, since his leg was lost below the knee, he was still able to go back to work at the firehouse.  Liam, of course, was ecstatic.  Niall knows his recovery (emotional, mostly) was thanks to their beautiful little girl who had fun taking care of her Papa and was happy to have him home to play and color with her, and of course, watch a lot of _How to Train Your Dragon_.  Despite the fear and anxiety and pain that came with Liam’s injury, in the end it brought their family impossibly closer.  And now having another child to share their love with made every day even brighter.  _God_ Niall loved his family.

Niall sighed fondly after his goofy husband and looked at Danny, smiling at the blue eyes that were identical to his own.  “We’re the only sane ones in this house, aren’t we little man?”

Danny squealed and grabbed Niall’s hood.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

He carried the boy out the car to find Liam buckling Briella into her car seat, and he passed Danny over to let Liam take care of him as well.  He climbed into the passenger side of the car and checked one last time to see that Briella had her backpack and lunch, Liam had his duffle, and Danny’s daycare bag was in the back seat. 

Liam climbed into the drivers side and started the car.  “Everyone ready?”

“Yeah Papa hurry _up!”_ Briella whined impatiently.

Liam chuckled and took Niall’s hand over the center console, gave him a small smile, and squeezed his hand three times. 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I had a lot of fun writing this. Niam daddies are my heart and soul and I finally got around to writing something. Hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
